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Blue Jays Bullpen: Jose Bautista has no excuse for tantrum

In this week’s edition of Richard Griffin’s Bullpen, Bautista’s costly run-in with the umpire in the ninth inning another example of the Jays acting more like a group of 25 individuals than a 25-man team.

Toronto Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista was ejected after yelling at home-plate umpire Gary Darling after striking out in the ninth inning against the Texas Rangers at Rogers Centre on June 9, 2013. (Tara Walton / Toronto Star) | Order this photo

What made Lawrie’s worse was that instead of the ridiculous distraction of Bautista’s anger being directed at a teammate or a coach, Joey Bats’ tantrum, once again, as happens far too often, was directed at home plate umpire Gary Darling. The focus there was on winning a game. Be a leader.

The Blue Jays were in the process of mounting another energizing comeback in the final inning vs. the Rangers, trailing 6-4 with runners on second and third and one out. Bautista approached the plate, already with three hits under his belt, although one of them was a scorer’s decision when second baseman Jurickson Profar slipped and fell to the turf. Bautista lucked out for some of his success.

A win would have given the Jays a three-game sweep against one of the best teams in baseball. There were no two hitters on the roster that the Jays would rather have had coming to the plate in that game-situation than Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion and that’s exactly who they had coming up.

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Bautista looked at a first pitch from closer Joe Nathan that was clearly out of the zone, but Darling swing his right hand up signalling a strike. Bautista swung his head around and glared. The next pitch was a swing and a miss, a pitch clearly in the strike zone. But Bautista by now had let the call get into his head. The veteran Nathan knew it and cleverly used Bautista’s anger against him.

No, Bautista did not give up on the key at-bat. That would never happen. There’s too much pride, too much ego. But down two strikes, Bautista felt he had to expand his strike zone with what Darling had done to hose him on that first pitch call. Nathan’s a smart man. Instead of throwing the Jays’ slugger a pitch anywhere near the zone, he launched a changeup in the dirt. An overanxious, over-heated Bautista swung violently and never came close. Failure was dominant in his head.

Now came the aspect that once again shows that the Jays are still more like a group of 25 individuals than they are a 25-man team. As he turned to leave, Bautista leaned directly towards Darling and yelled at him about the bad call, about it leading to a strikeout. He was immediately ejected but as Encarnacion stepped up, trying to focus on his own at-bat to tie or win the game, he, instead, was forced to step in between Bautista and the umpire, leaning on him trying to keep them apart.

Bautista, as he reached the dugout, an afterthought, fired his bat and his gloves back onto the turf further delaying play as the bat boy hustled out to gather his equipment. On a 2-2 pitch, Edwin popped to second base to end the game.

If Bautista wanted to make his point, if he wanted to vent his anger, if he wanted to be ejected, why could he not have held it in until after the Encarnacion at-bat, after the game. Go back out onto the field before Darling leaves and confront him, sure, because clearly that’s what he does. But when you do what he did it is the key to a lack of personal understanding of who he is — the team leader. Besides, what if the Jays had tied the game and gone to extra innings. Bautista’s bat and glove were gone.

Lawrie’s ninth inning actions are far worse than Bautista’s. The young third baseman showed an appalling lack of understanding for the way the game of baseball was played, for the strategy of winning and for the fact that his run that he thought should have been driven in that day meant absolutely nothing to the game at that time.

Even though Bautista’s anger was directed at a perceived enemy, while Lawrie’s was at a friend and teammate, the results in taking away from the focus of winning was exactly the same. Thankfully for Lawrie, Mune Kawasaki — who is Japanese — came up big. No such luck Sunday.

Looking for leadership. Hurry back, Jose Reyes.

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ANTHOPOULOS GOES BACK TO HIGH SCHOOL

The Jays went only slightly off the Baseball America recommendation for their first round pick in the June draft, Thursday. The Jays wandered away from the BA Top 10 to choose a 17-year-old, right-handed pitcher: 6-foot-4, 200 lb Phil Bickford from Oaks Christian in Westlake Village, California.

The Jays were selecting 10th overall because of their poor 73-89 finish a year ago. In that spot they got BA’s 20th ranked prospect, but the second highest-rated high school righthander.

Toronto’s scouting director Brian Parker amazingly claimed on a Thursday conference call that the Bickford pick was because the Jays always have great success shaping long, lean, hard-throwing teenagers into major-leaguers — although there’s not much recent proof that backs up that assertion. In fact, the only two high school pitchers to reach the majors drafted and signed by the Jays over the past 10 June drafts are Drew Hutchison (’09) and Jesse Litsch (’04).

Nevertheless, the Jays went big once again, on high school pitchers, led by Bickford and second-round selection, righthander Clinton Hollon from Kentucky. GM Alex Anthopoulos and his scouting staff, over 40 rounds in 2013, chose 21 high schoolers and 19 from junior colleges and four-year universities. The Jays chose 12 righthanded pitchers and 10 that throw lefthanded. Among position players, the Jays selected five shortstops, four first basemen, four catchers and just five outfieders.

The Jays’ slot amount, assigned by MLB for signing Bickford is a bonus of $2,921,400. If that’s not enough to lure him away from a commitment to the west coast baseball factory at Cal-St. Fullerton, the Jays will have to borrow from elsewehere in their Top 10. For that group of 10 draftees, the Jays have a total budget of $6,398,200. The signing deadline is August 15.

The baseball draft is so unlike the NHL draft, the NBA draft or even the NFL draft as to be laughable. Consider that from the 2011 and 2012 drafts, exactly zero of the Jays’ 98 picks have made it to the majors. Make no mistake: some of them eventually will, but if you paid no attention to the draft that unfolded from Thursday to Saturday, you will have time to catch up.

How tough is finding and developing major-leaguers? Going back to 2010, only two of 54 choices that year have played in the majors, RHP Sam Dyson (Rd. 4), now with the Marlins and LHP Sean Nolin (Rd. 6), who made one spot start this year and was shipped back to Double-A New Hampshire.

The most players to reach the majors out of any Jays draft over the past 10 years is seven, accomplished twice, in 2004-07, both drafts conducted by former GM J.P. Ricciardi.

The underrated bullpen is taking over this Blue Jays team, allowing it to keep its head above water while the rotation sorts itself out. Have these relief guys been overworked? Consider that in the past eight games, three of the starts have been by Esmil Rogers, Chad Jenkins and Ramon Ortiz. Two more were by a rehabbing Josh Johnson, who seems to have found his velocity if not his command.

Bolstered by the additions of Juan Perez and Neil Wagner and now the incredible reemergence of Dustin McGowan, the Jays’ pen throws hard and throws enough strikes, logging an incredible total of 44 1/3 innings in the past eight games. In that stretch, relievers have posted a 1.02 ERA, with 21 hits, 15 walks and 33 strikeouts. They have taken five of eight decisions, going 3-2.

Jenkins was supposed to be called up to make Tuesday’s start at Chicago, but instead, GM Alex Anthopoulos reached out and signed 33-year-old righthander Chien-Ming Wang to a one-year deal for $500,000, pro-rated. What that means is that with the time already elapsed, the maximum payment to Wang is $306,000. Wang finished second in Cy Young balloting in 2006, but has not logged more than 100 innings since 2007. He has a respectable 61-32 record and a 4.26 ERA in 130 games. Wang does not have to be as good as Brandon Morrow or J.A. Happ. He must be just as good as Jenkins.

The Jays went 3-2 in five games, with a pair of off days thrown in this week. They split a pair in San Francisco losing an encouraging start by Josh Johnson, seven innings in his return from the disabled list on Tuesday at AT&T Park. That was followed by R.A. Dickey’s best start of the season, going 8 1/3 innings, allowing two hits and two walks in a 4-0 shutout win.

The Jays then welcomed the first place Rangers for three games at the Rogers Centre. There were low expectations because of the pitching matchups, with Esmil Rogers filling in again for the Jays on Friday and Yu Darvish pitching for Texas on Saturday.

The Jays won both Friday and Saturday, threatening to sweep the series, falling just short on Sunday, with Johnson squandering a 4-0 lead, then the team falling behind and failing to tie it with two runners in scoring position and one out, trailing 6-4 in the ninth.

The Jays on Monday are in Chicago for three, then off to a rematch with the Rangers in Texas before heading home for a six-game homestand vs. the Rockies and O’s.

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THE ESSAY

Canadian amateur baseball is on the rise — at least at the elite level. That has a lot to do with the efforts of Baseball Canada and the Junior National program led by Greg Hamilton. Every spring, the junior national team travels to Florida during spring training, then later to the Dominican Republic in May. And every year, major-league scouts get a closer look at Canada’s best baseball prospects and their draft stock rises.

The goal of the junior program is mainly educational. But there are those like Brett Lawrie who can become breakout stars.

The Blue Jays drafted two of the total of 20 Canadian kids that were selected overall in 2013. In Round 18, the Jays chose righthander Sean Ratcliffe, a member of the Ontario Blue Jays from Ajax, Ontario. Then in the 21st round, the Jays picked catcher Mike Reeves, from Peterborough, Ontario. Reeves played at Florida Gulf Coast University (the March Madness Cinderellas) as a redshirt senior in 2013, batting .330 in 57 games hitting mainly leadoff or second in the order. Reeves was one of six FGCU players drafted. He had been selected out of high school in the 42nd round by the Jays in 09.

One of the stars of the current junior program is 17-year-old Cal Quantrill, of Port Hope, Ontario, son of Blue Jays executive and former pitcher Paul Quantrill. Quantrill ended up chosen by the Yankees in the 26th round. Quantrill has a letter of intent to attend Stanford University in the fall and will likely be headed there in August.

Following is a list of the 20 Canadians selected in the 2013 MLB Draft. The list was compiled by Media/PR Coordinator Adam Morrisette, of Baseball Canada.

When the Jays hired Tim Raines as an organization-wide base-running instructor, it was with the belief that he would add give some tips to the young players, allowing them to bump up their stolen base totals.

Following are the team records of the Jays’ four active affiliates. Also listed are the names of the top three stolen base leaders at each level. Raines has visited most of these cities.

Triple-A Buffalo (34-28)

LF Eugenio Velez 12

INF Mike McCoy 11

CF Anthony Gose 6

Double-A New Hampshire (31-33)

CF Kevin Pillar14

OF Kenny Wilson 6

LF Adam Loewen 4

A-Dunedin (33-26)

2B Jon Berti 29

3B Andy Burns 19

CF Jonathan Jones 8

A-Lansing (28-33)

CF Dalton Pompey20

3B Gustavo Pierre14

LF Dwight Smith 11

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THE LIST

The Blue Jays on Saturday afternoon at the Rogers Centre played an 18-inning marathon that took 5 hours and 28 minutes. The Jays won it 4-3, with the final of their nine pitchers, Aaron Loup picking up the win over Ross Wolf.

The previous Friday had ended the month of May with another marathon, with the Jays playing a 17-inning west coast monster that ended at around 3 a.m. in the east. The Padres won 4-3, spoiling 11 innnings of shutout baseball by the bullpen. Following is a list of the nine Jays games over 37 years that have gone 16-plus innings. The Jays are 5-4 in those nine games.

18: vs. Angels ... 7/28/05 ... W 2-1 ... WP Pete Walker

18: vs. Rangers 6/8/13 ... W 5-4 ...WP-Neil Wagner

17: @ Red Sox ... 10/4/80 ... W 7-6 ... WP Luis Leal

17: @ Marlins ... 6/8/98 ... L 3-4 ... LP Erik Hanson

17: vs. Yankees ... 4/19/01 ... L 5-6 ... LP Bobby File

17: @ Padres ... 5/31/13 ... L 3-4 ... LP Todd Redmond

16: vs. A’s ... 7/3/88 ... L 8-9 ... LP John Cerutti

16: @ Indians ... 9/9/89 ... W 7-5 ... WP Frank Wills

16: @ Indians ... 4/5/12 ... W 7-4 ... WP Luis Perez

The longest Jays game in terms of elapsed time came at Yankee Stadium, on April 19, 2001. That 17-inning game in ’01 took 5 hours and 57 minutes to play. Umpire Jerry Meals worked home plate in the ’01 marathon that took 5:57 and Meals was at third base on Saturday in the Jays’ 5:28 game.

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MLB NOTES

Brandon McCarthy has concussion-related seizure: As reported by azcentral.com, righthander Brandon McCarthy returning to the majors after massive head trauma on a line drive through the middle with the A’s, has suffered an off-field seizure related to the previous injury.

McCarthy was out to dinner with his wife in Phoeniz last Monday when the episode hit. He was taken to a hospital treated and released. McCarthy is currently on the DL with a right shoulder problem. He is expected to he able to continue his career when the shoulder heals.

Roger Clemens’ son drafted by Astros: Even though the hometown Houston Astros selected Kacy Clemens in the 35th round of the June draft, he’ll attend the University of Texas in the Fall. His father Roger, of course, attended Texas and won a national championship for the Longhorns.

Carlos Zambrano on fast track: The Phillies promoted righthander Carlos Zambrano to Double-A Reading after two successful Class-A starts and he performed well, putting himself on the fast-track to a major-league job that he hopes is in the rotation. He was signed as a free agent in May.

“Thank God the Phillies have given me this opportunity—and I’m here for them,” Zambrano told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “I’m here to pitch with them and I’m here to be one of the pieces along with the other 24 guys on the roster . . . be one little piece and help the team.”

Joe Blanton halfway to 20 losses: On Sunday, Angels righthander Joe Blanton allowed three homers at Fenway Park on his way to his 10th loss of the season. At 1-10, Blanton was one of three rotation pieces they brough in to bolster the starting pitching. Blanton was also a mercy part of the Phillies Fab 5 when they had Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Roy Haladay and Roy Oswalt, like he was like the Third Tenor.

This week in baseball history: June 10: 1944-LHP Joe Nuxhall, 15 years and 10 months old, made his major league debut with the Cincinnati Reds, becoming the youngest player in MLB history. Nuxhall was called upon in an 18-0 loss to the Cardinals, allowing five hits and two walks in one-third of an inning. Nuxhall took an 8-year hiatus and came back to the Reds as a 23-year-old going on to a 15-year career and 135 wins ... June 11: 1995 OF Rondell White of the Expos slams six hits and a cycle in a 10-8, 13-inning win over the Giants at Candlestick Park ... 1927 Whenever people think of 1927 they think of the Yankees, but nearby in Philadelphia the Athletics fielded a juggernaut of their own. On this one day, in the ninth inning, after Lefty Grove entered in relief the A’s fielded seven future Hall-of-Famers in the same lineup. They were Grove, C Mickey Cochrane, 1B Jimmie Foxx, 2B Eddie Collins and an OF of Ty Cobb, Al Simmons and Zack Wheat. The 91-63 A’s in ‘27 were managed by Hall-of-Famer Connie Mack ... June 12: 1979 The Tigers didn’t know it but they were five years away from a World Series victory when they fired manager Les Moss and replaced him with Sparky Anderson, skipper of the Big Red Machine of the mid-’70s. The Tigers in 1984 went on to beat the Padres in Sparky’s fifth season in Motown ... 1970 Pirates’ RHP Dock Ellis tosses a 2-0 no-hitter against the Padres and swears much later that he did it while completely whacked out on LSD. Consistently high and outside, Ellis walked eight and hit a batter. He claimed later that he believed for a moment that Richard Nixon was the umpire and he was facing Jimi Hendrix ... June 13: 2003 The Rocket, Roger Clemens in his fourth attempt at history, finally wins his 300th major-league game against the Cards in inter-league play ... 1913 RHP Christy Mathewson wins his 300th game for the New York Giants over the Cubs ... June 15: 1977 The Mets shock their fans by trading RHP Tom Seaver to the Reds for RHP Pat Zachry, 2B Doug Flynn, OF Dan Norman and OF Steve Henderson ... 1969 The expansion Expos can’t convince 1B Donn Clendenon to report in a trade with the Astros so they send him to the Mets for RHP Steve Renko, INF Kevin Collins and a pair of minor leaguers. Clendenon goes on to be World Series MVP ... 1938 LHP Johnny VanderMeer of the Reds records a second-straight no-hitter, this one vs. the Dodgers in what was the first night game ever played at Ebbets Field. You think bad lighting may have had something to do with Dodger hitters shut down ... June 16: 1909 RHP Jim Thorpe makes his pro pitching debut for Rocky Mount of the Eastern Carolina League. It is this game that causes Thorpe to be ridiculously stripped of his track and field medals at the ‘12 Olympic Games in Sweden.

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MLB POWER RANKINGS (as of June 9)

TEAM Last Week Start of Spring

1-St. Louis Cardinals 2-13

2-Atlanta Braves 3-2

3-Boston Red Sox 5-16

4-Texas Rangers 1-6

5-Oakland A’s 11-8

6-Cincinnati Reds 4-9

7-New York Yankees 7-14

8-Tampa Bay Rays 9-10

9-Pittsburgh Pirates 6-28

10-Arizona Diamondbacks 12-17

11-Detroit Tigers 10-7

12-Baltimore Orioles 8-11

13-San Francisco Giants 13-1

14-Colorado Rockies 15-25

15-Cleveland Indians 14-20

16-Minnesota Twins 16-26

17-Philadelphia Phillies 19-15

18-San Diego Padres 21-23

19-Kansas City 25-18

20-Washington Nationals 18-4

21-Seattle Mariners 20-21

22-Los Angeles Angels 22-12

23-Chicago White Sox 17-19

24-Toronto Blue Jays 26-3

25-New York Mets 23-27

26-Los Angeles Dodgers 24-5

27-Chicago Cubs 27-24

28-Houston Astros 29-30

29-Milwaukee Brewers 28-22

30-Miami Marlins 30-29

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ON THE ROAD AGAIN

There is nothing about flying that makes my heart race more than looking out the window of an airplane in the glide path before landing and seeing a baseball diamond, all lit up in early evening. There doesn’t even have to be a game happening. It’s just the look of a spotlight shining on a perfectly shaped inner diamond, dirt and grass coming together in a symmetry consistent throughout the world, but each diamond with its own unique setting of dirt, stands, outfield dimensions and neighbourhood. Such was the case on Sunday night, when I landed in Chicago for the three-game set vs. the White Sox.

While the Jays were completing the selection process in their three-day June draft and hosting the Rangers at the Rogers Centre on the weekend, I was kept busy coaching the improving minor-midget Oakville A’s in a tournament played in Oakville. Although we fell just short of advancing to Sunday’s semifinals, losing out in a defensive tie-breaker to North York, Saturday’s 5-2 win over Ancaster to give us a 2-1 record, was the finest game that we have played all season.

The execution on offence, included a pair of perfectly placed bunts, a crisply struck hit-and-run that kicked up first-base chalk and some aggressive baserunning that produced two of the five runs seemingly out of thin air — twice producing an extra base, being home plate, scoring two runs at key moments. And then there was LHP Ben Donnell, within one bad hop on his 101st pitch of a three-hit shutout. Having reached his pitch limit, he rolled a game-ending groundball to second that hopped up at the last moment. Donnell left the game, then closed by Alex DeVos. We’re building week by week.

Chicago is alive with young people, partying downtown, lined up to get into happening clubs in the Windy City’s fabulous downtown core, even on a Sunday night, taking advantage of the seasonably warm weather. Summer’s here and the living is breezy.

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